


Other days the line tends to deviate

by soberqueerinthewild



Category: Roswell New Mexico (TV 2019)
Genre: M/M, Not Canon Compliant, Pre-Canon, dysfunctional alien siblings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-22
Updated: 2019-08-22
Packaged: 2020-09-24 04:41:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,642
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20352562
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/soberqueerinthewild/pseuds/soberqueerinthewild
Summary: Pre-canon Michael comes out to Isobel.This was originally written before the finale, and so is not in line with the conversation they have about Alex in 1x13.Originally posted to tumblr on 6/12/19.





	Other days the line tends to deviate

**Author's Note:**

> I'm posting old tumblr fics to AO3 finally, so you may have already read this! Come visit me on tumblr, I'm soberqueerinthewild over there too. 
> 
> Title from Ani Difranco In or Out

Max may be the person Isobel loves most in this world, but Michael and Isobel both agree that he can be such a buzzkill sometimes. Isobel usually follows his lead and works hard to blend in to human life, but Michael knows it doesn’t come as easily to her as she wants Max to think. She loves her husband, but keeping up the facade and repressing any aspects of her personality that might be less than Instagram-worthy is hard work. So when Noah is out of town for work, and Isobel wants a chance to just be, it’s always Michael she calls. 

Michael pretends to be put out on these nights, but he secretly loves them. Michael and Max haven’t talked about anything real in years, that night ten years ago fractured their relationship in a way that even Max couldn’t heal. Michael knows they both blame themselves and each other. The anger and guilt tore Max and Michael apart, but it drew Michael closer to Isobel. She’s one of the only people he lets himself love fiercely, unequivocally, and unconditionally. She may never know the sacrifices he made for her, but Michael’s never forgotten that Izzy believes that he killed those girls, and she has stayed by his side. Unlike Max, she seems to enjoy Michael for who he is, not always lecturing or trying to change him. She delights in watching him use his powers, and appreciates his snark. Izzy has a biting, dark humor that Michael relishes, but seems to shock Max, so they can both be a little freer and less restrained when it’s just them. 

On this particular night, they decide to sit out in Isobel’s ridiculously opulent backyard, such a far cry from Michael’s Airstream that it’s laughable. Michael is using his powers to rearrange lawn furniture for Isobel’s amusement as she makes them drinks. Michael’s not picky, but Izzy enjoys making complex cocktails, even though she knows Michael is just going to ruin the delicate balance with a half a bottle of acetone. Isobel decides she wants it to be a movie night, and Michael lets her pick whatever she wants. 

Isobel weirdly loves alien movies, and her selection is some obscure one he’s never seen before. Unfortunately there’s a prevalent military plot line, which is not what Michael needs right now. Not when Alex just deployed for his second tour, and Michael is simultaneously angry at him and terrified for him. Alex was back in Roswell on leave just three weeks ago, and as always they couldn’t stay away from each other. As the date Alex was set to leave approached, Michael became petulant and short-tempered, already dreading the moment Alex would walk away from him yet again. He was successful at picking a fight, but unsuccessful at making that moment hurt less. So, a movie with military men hunting aliens wasn’t really how he wanted to spend his night. Luckily Isobel made the drinks strong and likes to talk through the movies, so he can mostly disengage from the plot. 

He’s a few drinks in and realizing that the mixture of booze, acetone, and the soldier movie is making him a bit maudlin, when Isobel’s voice breaks his reverie. “You know I love Noah, but if he didn’t exist I might hit up the bars near the military base. The soldier thing’s kind of hot.” Michael glances at the screen where the main character has stripped his shirt off for some reason. From the back he kind of looks like Alex. Michael’s three sheets to the wind, which is the only possible explanation for what comes out of his mouth next. “Agreed. I wouldn’t kick him out of bed.” 

He hears a clatter, as ordinarily unflappable Isobel knocks her glass over as she wheels her whole body around to gape at him. “What was that now, little brother?” They may be the same age, but Isobel has always called him that when they’re alone. 

He briefly considers playing it off as a joke, but he’s usually terrible at lying to Isobel, plus he can tell in this instance she’s interested and tipsy enough that she might decide to try digging through his memories. He _really _cannot handle having a conversation about Alex with the state he’s in, and he knows that’s what she’ll see if she so much as steps one foot into his mind right now. 

Instead, he gives a non-committal shrug. “What, you think aliens can’t be bisexual?” 

Isobel sputters for a minute. “Umm no, it just never occurred to me that you were. I’m pretty tapped into the gossip here, so I tend to hear about every girl you pick up at the Wild Pony whether I want to or not. I’m pretty sure I would’ve heard if you were taking home men. This is fascinating, though.” 

She gets that look on her face she always gets before she taps into her powers, He knows, even in his drunken state, that he only has one option to make sure she has no interest in delving into his thoughts, and asking him about Alex. 

He schools his features into his cockiest smirk, and drawls, “Well you know, there is this bar that’s a good time. Matter of fact, it's definitely frequented by some guys from the base. I don’t think you’d have much luck there, but I do just fine. In fact, last time I was there, I picked up this guy, and went back to his place, and we...” 

As he predicted, her mind reader face quickly morphs into the disgusted look she gets anytime she’s forced to contemplate Max or Michael’s sex life. 

“Ew, ew, ew, ew, no Michael!” she shouts tossing a napkin in his direction. “I do not need to hear about your sexcapades with men _or _women thank you very much.” 

In truth, there’s not that much to tell. He has gone to that gay bar on a few occasions. He is, at his core, still a scientist, and scientists experiment. What he felt for Alex was so much stronger than anything he’d ever felt for any girl he’d been with, so he had briefly wondered if maybe that meant he was gay. But that didn’t really make sense to him, because he knew he was certainly attracted physically to women. He did some reading and wondered if maybe he was that kind of bisexual where he was attracted to women and men, but could only have romantic feelings for men. He then considered that maybe Alex was the only guy he was attracted to, romantically or physically. 

To test his theories, he got really wasted one night and hit up the only gay bar in a 100 mile radius. He realized quickly that it was in fact possible for him to be attracted to men that weren’t Alex, and he managed some decent sex, but it felt like the sex he had with women... fine, satisfying even, but just sex. So after a few attempts, he decided he was just bisexual, with the capacity to only feel romantic attraction to Alex. So basically fucked. Once he figured that out, he mostly stuck to picking up women, which didn’t require quite as much effort or gas money. 

Plus, since he had been hoping to avoid this particular conversation with Isobel, he’d been a little worried about running into someone he knew, and it getting back to her. Particularly after he’d spotted Max’s partner, Jenna Cameron in the corner of the bar the last time he was there. She’d been occupied by, from Michael’s perspective, rather skillfully picking up a girl. Since she’d never mentioned it any of the myriad of times he’d been in the back of her cop car since then, he could almost convince himself she hadn’t noticed him, except that he could have sworn she’d sent a wink in his direction as she walked out the door with the girl she’d been talking with. When Isobel later told him that Jenna and Max had some kind of friends with benefits thing going on, he’d internally questioned her sanity since she clearly had better options, as the girl she’d taken home had been _very _good looking by Michael’s estimation, but he figured maybe she was a pragmatic bi, like him, settling for convenience over quality. 

But Iz didn’t need to know any of that. By threatening her with details, he felt assured that she’d stay out of his mind at least for now, and he wouldn’t have to talk about Alex. Hopefully now they can just focus on the movie, have a few more drinks, and he can pass out on her couch. But it seems like Izzy’s not quite ready to leave it alone. 

“You know it’s fine with me, right? That you’re bisexual.” 

Michael scoffs, “Iz, this isn’t an after school special, I haven’t been cowering in the closet in shame or anything.” 

Isobel laughs, “Ok, I know you hate sincerity, so I won’t say it again, but I love you little brother. And now we can check out guys together!!” 

Michael groans, his head hitting the back of his chair with a crack. “No, Isobel. We are not doing that. Also, I do not plan on having this conversation with Max, ever, so keep your mouth and your twin telepathy thing on lockdown about this.” 

She does a mock salute, and thankfully drops it, for now. Of course, since he can’t be that lucky, every time they have movie night from that point forward, she comments on the attractiveness of the male protagonists, trying to find out his type, and teases him mercilessly, just like she does about everything else. He pretends to hate it, but he feels lighter somehow, that she knows this part of him and doesn’t turn away.


End file.
